Reimagining Cityscapes Through Illustration – CityLiveSketch by Pietro Cataudella

Location: Global
Sector: Architecture, Illustration, Urban Culture
Project: CityLiveSketch
Artist: Pietro Cataudella

CityLiveSketch is a visual exploration that reconsiders how cities are perceived and represented. Through this ongoing project, Italian illustrator Pietro Cataudella overlays hand-drawn architectural sketches onto real urban photographs, transforming everyday cityscapes into speculative narratives that challenge conventional visual interpretations of the built environment.

Concept and Artistic Approach

At the core of CityLiveSketch is the direct intervention into existing urban imagery. By drawing over real photographs, Cataudella introduces imagined structures, extensions, and spatial ideas that coexist with the present city. This hybrid approach blurs the boundary between reality and speculation, encouraging a more open-ended reading of urban form.

Architecture as Narrative

Rather than proposing fixed designs, the illustrations function as narrative devices. Each sketch invites viewers to imagine alternative futures for familiar landmarks and streets, reframing architecture as a storytelling medium. The work highlights how visual representation can influence perception, emotion, and engagement with public spaces.

Challenging Conventional Urban Representation

CityLiveSketch questions traditional modes of architectural visualization that often prioritise precision and finality. In contrast, Cataudella’s hand-drawn overlays embrace ambiguity and imagination, suggesting that cities are not static entities but evolving canvases shaped by cultural ideas and creative interpretation.

Cultural and Creative Impact

By embedding speculative gestures within recognisable contexts, the project opens new conversations around urban identity, creativity, and public imagination. CityLiveSketch demonstrates how illustration can act as a powerful tool for rethinking cities—not as finished products, but as spaces continually shaped by ideas, narratives, and human experience.